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This is a list of Australian diarists of World War I including Australian servicemen and women, other Australians associated with the armed forces, and those who remained in Australia.
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Many soldiers chose to keep a diary to document their personal experiences during the conflict.[2] Regulations forbade the practice of individual soldiers keeping diaries in front line positions, yet the practice was apparently not uncommon.[3] Individual diaries were officially forbidden because their capture by the enemy could yield valuable intelligence regarding unit identification, troop movements, etc.[4] Individual diaries had to be portable and easily hidden. Many were approximately 9.5 by 15 centimetres (3.7 in × 5.9 in), which made them small enough to fit in a chest pocket.[5] Next of kin were often listed.[5] While the original diaries were handwritten, many soldiers later rewrote or typed their diary[6]: 152 with some also publishing their work. Most diaries were kept by the soldier or their family. Military units were required to keep official records,[7] which are also referred to as War Diaries.[8] These records cover operations and planning, administration, and personnel.[8] They were updated on a daily basis.[9] These records are now at the Australian War Memorial.[10]
Many diaries were retained by the soldier or their family, however some of the surviving diaries are held in the collections of Australian cultural institutions including the Australian War Memorial,[11] National Archives of Australia,[12] State Library of New South Wales,[13] State Library of Queensland,[14] State Library of South Australia,[15] and State Library of Victoria.[16][17] The Australian War Memorial and the State Library of New South Wales were the first in Australia to attempt to collect war diaries on a large scale.[6]: 134 The urge to collect these documents reflected contemporary understandings of history and research, which emphasised the role of primary sources and saw history as a science instead of an art.[6]: 138 While the Library prioritised original documents over copies,[6]: 137 the Memorial instead collected both original documents and copies.[6]: 149
William Ifould, Principal Librarian at the Public Library of New South Wales (later State Library of New South Wales),[18] led a collecting drive which began within six months of the conclusion of the war.[6]: 136 [19]: 90 Ifould arranged for advertisements in newspapers across Australia offering to buy relevant papers for the Library,[20][21][22] and also reached out to soldiers through the Returned Soldiers' Association of New South Wales.[6]: 137 Efforts focused on diaries documenting training and active service,[19]: 92 with accounts recorded "at the moment" or as soon after as possible considered the most useful.[6]: 141
The Memorial aimed to document the whole of Australia's war experience, initially focusing on published sources and the official records of the war.[6]: 142 The Memorial began collecting personal documents including diaries in 1927.[6]: 142 It was Arthur Bazley, historian Charles Bean's assistant at the Memorial, who suggested using the addresses recorded in the Roll of Honour Circulars to contact next-of-kin (and, later, servicemen and women directly[6]: 149 ) to ask for diaries and personal papers to be donated.[6]: 144 John Treloar, Director of the Memorial, publicised the project and encouraged donations.[6]: 142
In total, 416,809 Australians enlisted for service.[23] Only 500 diaries were collected by the Library, despite wide advertising, while approximately one in four soldiers or families contacted by the Memorial donated material.[6]: 151
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